The subject matter discussed in the background section should not be assumed to be prior art merely as a result of its mention in the background section. Similarly, a problem mentioned in the background section or associated with the subject matter of the background section should not be assumed to have been previously recognized in the prior art. The subject matter in the background section merely represents different approaches, which in and of themselves may also be inventions.
When one wants to select a phone service for a mobile device, the customer needs to have a phone that has a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) with an International Mobile Subscription Identity (IMSI) and Ki from that carrier to use the desired service. As a consequence, someone that wants to switch carriers typically needs to buy a new phone in order to have a phone with a SIM having an IMSI and Ki associated with the new carrier, because, even when using the same model phone for two different providers, the SIM cards are not interchangeable.